ISLAMABAD: Trade and shipping activity at Gwadar Port has got a boost in the backdrop of US-Iran war as port utilisation reaches 30% amid optimism about further increase in business. The Middle East war is reshaping the region and its surroundings where different blocs are emerging. The United States, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and…
A delegation of top leadership from chambers of commerce and industry across the country met with the prime minister, presenting proposals for the upcoming budget. The prime minister directed that all pending tax refund cases be cleared by June 15. Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif met with the delegation, where detailed discussions were held on…
Gold prices on Monday declined in both the international and local markets, while silver prices recorded an increase. In the international bullion market, the price of gold per ounce fell by $44 to $4,494. According to the All Pakistan Gems and Jewellers Sarafa Association, in the local market, the price of gold per tola declined…
US crude futures up $2.88 to $90.24 a barrel as of 12:01pm PST, Brent futures rose $2.78 to $93.9 a barrel Oil containers at the Port of Fujairah, as the US-Israel conflict with Iran limits marine traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, on May 6, 2026. PHOTO: REUTERS Oil prices…
Absence of positive signals from Strait of Hormuz and budgetary concern weigh on market sentiment KARACHI: It was a day for the bears at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday as stocks came under selling pressure from the opening bell. As selling intensified during the session, the benchmark KSE-100 Index extended losses and was…
Energy has become a weapon, supply chains are being redrawn and vulnerable economies like Pakistan stand exposed ISLAMABAD: The world economy is no longer passing through a temporary crisis; it is undergoing a structural reset. The Ukraine-Russia war first disrupted the global energy order, and the escalating Middle East conflict has now deepened that rupture….
ISLAMABAD: The principal reason for low revenue collection in Pakistan is weak fiscal management and a policy framework designed to appease tax evaders while burdening the already documented sectors. In 2026, while the numbers have become astronomical, the underlying disease remains unchanged. The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) is still missing targets, relying excessively on…
ISLAMABAD: In the global conversation about technology and growth, a telling contradiction persists. The world has never been more digitally connected, and yet approximately 2.6 billion people remain entirely offline, not always because infrastructure is absent, but because the systems built around it were never designed with them in mind. This is not a resource…
A mid-level and high-earner now pay same top rate; ambition being taxed out of formal economy KARACHI: Here is a policy question worth asking before the next budget: if a worker today earns exactly what it takes to live the way someone on Rs100,000 a month lived in 2021, why are they being taxed as…
A policeman walks past the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) office building in Islamabad on August 29, 2018. Photo: REUTERS ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has missed its target by a wide margin of Rs864 billion, as the government’s tax plan for the new budget may largely revolve around tweaking rates that can…